Hell yes.
 

finally! i want to know everyones folk tastes. so put down your 3 favourite folk artists and explain why their so damn great.

mine.
Devandra Banhart: this man is god. hobo turned singer songwriter though to me hes more of a storyteller. all his songs have that quality of enlightenment. you feel as if you've done something useful after listening to his music.
Willy Mason: son of hippie parents and it shows. his lyrics have real meaning and social relevance.
Okkervil River: great band. so experimental and expansive on such a tight budget. will robison sheff is a great songwriter with great vocal ability.
your turn.

i really enjoy willy mason too! i don't know that much about folk but there was this one artist that i enjoyed.he was kinda like a protestor during the vietnam war. he made all these really cool songs like one about math and school, i heard him during my history class, but i forgot who he was...any clues, if you can? sorry if it's a burden but he was hilaríous and i think he used to write on a black board sometimes for visual stimuli. hope that helps...

Cat Stevens?

I really like Paul Simon, Leadbelly and Woody Guthrie

I think Paul Simon is amazing all around for his play style and his writings but mostly with garfunkle, his need for crazy excess seemed to take away from him writings.

Im a huge fan of Tom Waits, and while not all he did is folk, I think when he does folk you can really process his writing style and in my opinion that makes the song better. Of course stupid people tend to be turned off by his voice, which makes him permenantly cool since the pop crowd will never adhere to his CD's.

As for a new artist I really like Langhorn Slim's Electric Love Letter, I don't know if its available for illegal DL but it was on iTunes. Check out the track "Cut it down" which is live but it shows you how well he works a crowd, if you can get through the 7+ mins, you'll know just how well that is.

Also, as a PS, im really into Kathleen Edwards.

martha wainwright is another amazing folk artist with a heavenly voice. check out BMFA. does like to swear a lot though..

"poetry is no place for a heart thats a whore"

What a kick ass opening line. This is pretty good, she has good lyrics, you can tell she's studied the greats. I bet if you read this aloud without music accompaning it, it would sound pretty good still.

Very very true.

I like Richie havens a lot, Old achool Tom Waits quite a bit, Joni Mitchell is my babymama, and me & Joan Baez tight like spandex, ya' herd?

What CD's? I didn't think Closing time was so great, but certainly Blue Valentine, Heart of Saturday Night, and Mule Variations, which isn't old school but is folk.

I like Closing Time. Its a lot different than what he's known for, but there's some good songs. Small Change, Heart of Saturday Night, Heart Attack and Vine, Swordfishtrombones, and Frank's Wild Years are my favorite old scool albums. Definitely not all folk, but still tasty.